


Not a Shadow

by kuchiki977



Category: Kill la Kill
Genre: Age Difference, F/M, Fluff, Gen, SO MUCH FLUFF, get some butter for this shit cuz dayum, i am corny as hell, i think i got a cavity from writing this, nothing happens but just to be safe I gave it a T-rating, two idiots in love, uzu is not the smartest but we love him anyway
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-17
Updated: 2015-08-17
Packaged: 2018-04-15 02:02:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4588854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kuchiki977/pseuds/kuchiki977
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Uzu likes being lavished with attention. Even if the attention comes from a spacey, energetic screwball of an older woman. (He's in middle school and she's in high school, calm down.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not a Shadow

**Author's Note:**

> Yep. This is one of those 'what if one of them was older' tropes. I like the idea of Oblivious Older sister type!Mako. Sorry not sorry.

Uzu had taken to kendo since he was four because it was the only way he could vent his frustrations. His parents always showered his older brother with praise and it felt as if he lived in his brother's shadow. It made him feel inadequate to say the least. 

Thus, an angry boy on his way to kendo practice was not the best target for potential muggings. However, Matarou Mankanshoku wasn't aware of that little tidbit. Uzu had taken out all of his lackeys and had Matarou by the shirt collar when a book bag suddenly flew in out of no where and hit the wanna-be thug in the back of the head. 

A feminine, angry voice yelled,"Trying to mug people again, huh?!"

Uzu dropped him and he heard Matarou mumble, "Crap, my sister's here." A strange girl with a bowl-cut that certainly looked like him appeared. She was wearing the uniform for the school his brother goes to. Her dark hair reminded him of a coconut.

Coconut head marched over and threw her little brother up in the air and caught him in a wrestling hold. He'd never met a girl that knew how to wrestle before. All the upper class girls were boring and more interested in his brother once they realized that Uzu was too rowdy for their tastes. He tuned back into the bickering siblings' conversation, "Why weren't you at school?!"

"I went!" Uzu wasn't fooled. He was wearing shorts and a black sweater instead of a uniform. Neither was his sister.

"Then why weren't you there when I checked?!"

"I was...?" The uncertainty of his tone gave him away. Rookie mistake.

"Lying is bad!" she admonished before changing positions. Matarou was much more willing to talk with the new hold she had him in. It looked painful. He didn't legs were supposed to go back that far.

"I went! Honest! I just left early!" The desperation didn't convince Uzu but Matarou's sister seemed to buy it.

"Oh. Ok~." She started to get up and Matarou made to escape when she suddenly decided that answer wasn't good enough. She quickly sat back down and held back his legs until he said "uncle." She demanded, "Why did you leave early?!"

"Because!"

"Because why?!"

"Well..." She seemed to realize why without his explanation and squeezed a promise out of him to go to school for the _whole day_ tomorrow. Uzu assumed he had left early with the intention of mugging people on the street before his sister got out of school. Though that was assuming he went in the first place.

"Ok, ok, just get off!"

She finally relented and faced his cohorts who recovered during his beatdown and had watched with rapt attention. They flinched and she told them that they had to go to school the entire day tomorrow too. They silently nodded enthusiastically in answer. Satisfied, she told them to go home and grabbed her struggling brother by the wrist and started walking away. The lackeys quickly left and the weird girl dragged Matarou away.

The two siblings are almost out of sight by the time he realizes that he's angry she completely ignored him. He doesn't know why he wants someone so ridiculous to pay attention to him but he does. Uzu follows them home and sits outside on sidewalk in front of their house. That's what the badasses in the movies do when they get ready to face the bad guys. He knows that his attempted attacker's older sister isn't actually all that bad, but he can't forgive how she completely overlooked him.

As he waits for coconut head to come outside again, he studies their house. It's a small shack with a very bright sign on top of it. The shack itself wasn't in bad condition but he had a feeling that it would be nicer or at least bigger if the sign wasn't so unnecessarily bright or big. Their garage is at least half as big as their house for pete's sake!

He's not sure what a 'back-alley doctor' is but it sounds really suspicious. The other sign saying 'quick' and 'cheap' isn't very reassuring either. He notices that their family name is Mankanshoku. The weird name suits probably weird folks. 

 

He's not sure how long he waits there but it's dark by the time she finally comes to throw out the trash. He almost fell asleep but her rustling wakes him up. "I challenge you to a fight!"  She jumps as if startled. She hadn't noticed he was there again?! 

"Hello there, cute little boy! What's your name?" Her bright smile almost distracted him from her daring mistake of calling him _cute_.

He never misses an opportunity to introduce himself, "My name is Sanageyama Uzu and I am _not_ cute!" It sounds a bit whiney but he assumes he gets his point across. "Now are you going to fight me or-" The rest of his sentence is muffled. She must be a pretty good fighter if he didn't see her coming! He didn't even notice her arms enveloping him until she made contact. Impressive. Now if only she would stop cooing that he was "so~ adorable!"

He needed air and the whatever part of her he was being hugged to didn't allow for much oxygen. It was very soft though. He leaned away from her embrace a little before she pulled him back in so she could rub her cheek against his. Her face was so close and she smelled nice. Flustered, he demanded she back up. 

With a drawn out whine of disappointment, she backed up. Then he realized it.

He only reached about her waist and she had hunched over for the first hug so that meant that the soft part of her that had little airflow was her ch-che-chest!! He couldn't help but look at it and he noticed that it was quite a bit larger than average. He flushed and was even more embarrassed when the girl asked what was wrong. He might have died of embarrassment if she had caught him staring. He gets lost in thoughts of how soft they were until he finally hears her ask him if he's lost.

Angry at being patronized, he growls "How old do you think I am?!"

She either didn't pick up on his tone or didn't care, and answered unsurely, "A kindergartner?"

Needless to say, Uzu is pissed. He's the same age as her brother dammit! Just because he's a bit smaller than the average boy his age _doesn't_ make him look like a kindergartner! This is one of the rare occasions that he is grateful he has an older brother. If there's one thing his brother is good for, it's that he's living proof that he'll shoot up in height in a few years. He was small when he was younger too.

Nevertheless, Uzu boils in rage and is about to tell her off when she notices the scratches on his face and the scabs on his knees. Mako grabs his hand and drags him inside the house before he begins his tirade. "Uzu-chan! Where did you get these injuries?!" Instead of answering, he looks about the house. No one is in the hallway but he does hear chatter in a room behind a closed door.

She brings out a first aid kit from a room down the hall and starts dabbing his face with alcohol.  He hisses and she apologizes but continues to wipe the wounds clean. They had been getting a bit itchy. He reluctantly settles down so she can clean them properly. Once she's done cleaning his scratches, he nearly goes blind with how much he rolls his eyes at how she struggles with the bandaids. Seriously? How uncoordinated can one person be? He didn't want to think how this person had gotten the best of him twice.

Finally, he snatches the box from her and opens it before holding it out to her. She smiles at him and says "thank you!" His cheeks do _not_ get red again. Six bandaids later, she's finally done and he is about to tell her not to call him "Uzu-chan." Unfortunately, his stomach growls and she gasps as if she just learned a horrible secret. She asks if he's hungry and wants some dinner _as_ she drags him into the family's dining room. An older woman that he suspects is the Mankanshoku siblings' mom greets him warmly and the portly man with sharp teeth waves and grins in a friendly manner. His makeshift medic nearly force-feeds him suspicious croquettes while Matarou curls his upper lip in disgust at him. Not that he really cares.

The Mankanshoku family was mostly silent after introductions. Uzu thought the silence was much more companionable instead of the hollow conversations they had over the table at his house. The girl, Mako, asked him how he liked the food. Despite their sketchy appearance, the croquettes were actually quite tasty. Nothing can compare to konnyaku though and he tells her so.

She has the audacity to ask, "What's konnyaku?" Aghast that someone doesn't even know, he offers to bring her some.  Though he is often pissed off at his family, he takes pride in their konnyaku. He knows that their success is because of their skill at making it.

"Really?!" Excited, Mako gets up too quick and trips on air. The position she lands in gives him quite the opportunity to check out what's under her skirt. Though Uzu is a self-proclaimed thug, he was brought up in high society so he doesn't take the opportunity to take a peak. She rights herself seconds later, rubbing her head though she doesn't seem particularly injured. She notices the time and shrieks. She turns to face Uzu and asks where he lives. Confused, he tells her and she drags him out into the night right then and there.

Mako shouted back to him as she ran, "Your parents must be worried, sick!"  He didn't particularly care if they were, since he wasn't even their favorite son. He's honestly more worried about this screwball being alone at night.

"We're not wearing shoes," he answers instead. She turns stops in her tracks and turns around. Her embarrassed face is quite funny to Uzu. Her pursed lips and furrowed brow are almost cute. He holds in a laugh and leads them back to her house. No one is surprised that they're back and they put on their shoes before making the journey back to his house. Again. 

She seems downcast after her mistake so he offers her his hand. No other reason. Certainly not because he wanted to! She visibly brightens and grabs it enthusiastically. 

She sings weird songs as they walk and swings their hands back and forth. He uses the time to think. Most of the girls his age are afraid when he snaps at them but Mako isn't. It's kind of frustrating but he likes that about her at the same time. He refuses to be babied by adults so why does he allow her to hold his hand and why does it give him warm and fuzzy feelings? She's all over the place and it should be annoying but he likes how energetic she is.

He stops them when he sees the front gate of his family's estate. When Mako sees his house, she immediately lets go of his hand and bows deeply.  She starts apologizing. For a number of things.  He nearly shouts,"Stop bowing and stop apologizing!" She immediately stands and lifts her arm into a sloppy salute.  He is amused by her antics but is serious when he tells her, "Stop saluting too." She looks conflicted. He guesses its because she doesn't know of any other respectful gestures.

She finally puts her arm down but she looks at her feet instead. She apologizes again, "Sorry Sanageyama-sama." That title doesn't sit right with him after getting to know her.  Only the servants call him that and the monotone they use makes it sound even more hollow and distant.

He orders her, "Call me by my name or not at all."

Mako thinks for a moment and tries, "Sanageyama-san?"

It's still too distant for his liking so he corrects her, "Uzu."

She seems happy again and sweeps him into a hug while calling him "Uzu-kun." His face flames at having his face squished into her bosom again but at least she's not being distant.

 

 

Uzu keeps his promise and makes her konnyaku himself. It's not as good as his brother can make but he gave it his best shot. He brings it with him to school and his focus in class even more lacking than usual. He can't stop thinking about the smile she'll give him when she eats it.

When school is finally over, he nearly sprints out of the classroom. Ignoring the teachers' shouts of "Slow down, Sanageyama" all the while. He can't get to the Mankanshoku household fast enough.

His and Matarou's school is pretty far from the Mankanshoku home but he arrives at the fence around their house at the same time Mako does. She smiles as she greets him, "Uzu-kun!"  His already fast heartbeat speeds up a little more.

She invites him into the house again and they eat them together. Mako really likes them and showers his family with praise. He proudly tells her that he made them himself. Before he can get onto his high horse, her face is pressed up against his and rubbing their cheeks together while complimenting him, "Uzu-kun is so skilled and cute. So cool~!"

Uzu blushes and his face feels hot enough that it could fry an egg. He doesn't even mind that she called him 'cute' again.

 

 

He brings her konnyaku regularly after that. Because he's a nice person. Not because he likes when she hugs and praises him or anything. He stops by often enough that he becomes something of a regular guest at the Mankanshoku house. They even make a place for him at their dinner table!

Mrs. Mankanshoku likes him quite a bit and calls him handsome. Mr. Mankanshoku ruffles his hair while asking him how he's doing.  He treats Uzu like he's his own son and Uzu likes him quite a bit. Rather than measuring his children by their accomplishments, he just loves them equally. He likes Mrs. Mankanshoku just as much, if not more, because she reigns in her husband when he gets too out of hand. Unlike his mom.

Matarou and he have an understanding of sorts. They realized how alike they are. It also helped that they both jumped to defend Mako when some of her classmates were saying rude things to her. Matarou had been surprised he had said anything but he had been thankful when the guys came at them and Uzu handed their asses to them.

Though he does like the family better than his own, Mako is the main reason he keeps coming back. He likes how nice she is and his heart always speeds up when he thinks about her smile. He doesn't like to go home now more than ever.

 

He overhears some girls at school talking about finding their 'special person.' It sounds more like a disease than a 'dream come true' but some of the things they say catch his attention. They mention some of the symptoms he has whenever Mako's concerned. 

He figures out that rather than seeing her as an older sister, he thinks of her as a 'special person.'  Mako isn't particularly bright, but she's cheerful and nice and he likes that.  She also doesn't see him as a shadow of his older brother. No unmet expectations, no comments about how different he is from his brother, and she doesn't look right through him for a copy of his perfect brother. None of that. To Mako, he is just _Uzu-kun._

Though there is one problem. Mako is five years older than him. He also doesn't know if she feels the same or if she has even noticed his feelings. But he is sure of one thing: he likes Mako. He doesn't want anyone to take her away. He ponders the problem a moment.

He snapped his fingers upon enlightenment. His solution: marriage. That way, she's off-limits and he doesn't have to worry about her!

 

After school, he heads to the Mankanshoku household as usual. He doesn't allow himself to get distracted and nearly demands, "Let's get married." She paused, shocked. The silence stretched on and he got more nervous. Luckily, the only other person in the house was Mrs. Mankanshoku and he didn't see or hear her in the immediate area. 

Finally, she answered easily, "Okay~!" He has a feeling that she knows as much about marriage as he does, which is nothing. But at least she agreed. He breathed a sigh of relief.

Mrs. Mankanshoku nearly gave him a heart attack when she popped out from behind a wall and said, "How sweet! Welcome to the family, Uzu-kun!" Matarou and his father also chimed in congratulations from around another wall but instead of Mrs. Mankanshoku's sincere smile, they had shit-eating grins. 

He could have died of embarrassment in that moment, but then he wouldn't be able to see Mako smile so happily.

 


End file.
